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NCAAF
Saturday, September 12
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Game of the day: USC at Ohio State
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USC Trojans at Ohio State Buckeyes (+7, 45)
Believe the hype. Hollywood invades the Horseshoe when No. 3 USC visits No. 7 Ohio State in what is seen as the biggest game in the early college football season. The importance of the game extends beyond the reputation of the Buckeyes to win during big games, as the credibility of the Big Ten is at stake as well.
As for USC, it has dominated non-conferences BCS opponents on the road, winning eight straight. But with the Oregon loss to Boise State last week and recent BCS title game snubs, the image of the PAC -10 as always, lies within Trojans’ non-conference performances.
Pressuring Barkley
Most of the attention is centered around the quarterbacks, sophomore Terrell Pryor and true freshman Matt Barkley. Both were the No. 1 QBs out of high school, but the similarities stop there. Pryor made his commitment process a long drawn out drama that extended beyond national signing day, while Barkley committed to USC in grade 11. Pryor's a dual-threat QB while Barkley's a traditional pocket passer.
Many people are eager to see how the true freshman Barkley will handle the crowd in Columbus. He went 15-for-19 for 233 yards and one TD in his college debut last week. USC has done well on the road with new quarterbacks, but Palmer, Leinart, Booty and Sanchez were not true freshman when they first faced a hostile crowd.
Barkley joked with the Daily News that the toughest crowd he ever went against was "Maybe in the seventh grade, when the parents got in a fight at a junior All-American game,"
Expect early pressure from the Ohio State defense in an attempt to rattle the freshman. The key battle will be along the line. Southern Cal has one of the best offensive lines in the country, but Ohio State’s defensive line boasts great depth and defensive coordinator Jim Heacock will be rotating fresh bodies constantly. The last time Ohio State faced a high profile freshman QB was in 2006 against Colt McCoy of Texas. The Buckeyes beat No. 2 Texas in Austin 24-7 as two point underdogs.
Containing Pryor
A big key for the game will be stopping Terrelle Pryor, who brings back nightmares of Vince Young and the 2006 Rose Bowl
Southern Cal’s reputation of struggling against scrambling QBs is a bit unjustified as very few people could stop Vince Young that year and USC did only lose by three points. The Trojans will look to spy a lot and will leave the secondary in man coverage for most of the game. When Pryor did see success against the Trojans last year it was on draws and rollouts. Head coach Pete Carroll will be expecting the same this year.
Ohio State has a bit of an edge at QB with Pryor not having to split duties with Todd Boeckman, who threw two interceptions in last year's game. Southern Cal took at hit losing an experienced signal caller in Mark Sanchez. Pryor was 7-for-9 in last year's game, throwing for 52 yards and rushing for 40.
USC run game
Despite the media focus on the QBs, the key to the game may actually lie within USC's run game. Southern Cal again has a talented rotation of running backs that goes five deep and fullback Stanley Havili is a huge offensive threat. As is the case with the last couple of years, it’s hard to tell what that rotation will be, but Joe McKnight and Stafon Johnson are expected to get the bulk of the carries.
In last week's contest against San Jose State, USC's run pass ratio was 2-to-1, with the team rushing for 343 yards. The offense, under new coordinator John Morton, features 32-year-old Jeremy Bates who will be calling plays. Bates seemed to be running a more passive gameplan and will be cautious with Barkley. Despite his age Bates does have a wealth of experience having tutored Jay Cutler as an assistant with the Denver Broncos.
Buckeyes secondary
Ohio State’s biggest weakness is the secondary. The focus on pressuring Barkley and on stopping the run could leave the Buckeyes in single-coverage trouble with a talented receiving core that is led by Damian Williams. This year, USC will also not have to gameplan around former star CB Michael Jenkins, who now plays on Sundays.
Most the of the criticism has been directed towards safety Anderson Russell, who was beat on both TD passes from Navy last week and is known for giving up the game-winning TD against Texas in the Fiesta Bowl last year. The team seems to be addressing the problem with Russell relegated to the second team in practice and JR Jermale Hines taking over his place in the first team.
Throw out last week's result
USC's 52-3 blowout of San Jose St. and Ohio State's season opening nail biter against Navy should not be completely ignored. But those games are not a clear indication of how each team will come out Saturday.
The Trojans were slowly working in a true freshman at QB and USC's scout-team defense is perhaps a notch above San Jose St. Barkley himself claimed that the hardest part of the game was, "The run up the tunnel at halftime”.
Things were a bit tougher in Columbus with Navy coming within a two-point conversion of tying the game late in the fourth quarter.
Many critics will compare the opener with the narrow 26-14 victory over the Ohio Bobcats last year, which occurred a week before the USC game. Ohio, however, was a 4-8 team while Navy has been to six straight bowl games.
It’s a safe bet that the Buckeyes were looking ahead and the close game against Navy may actually work in their favor, having already put themselves in a pressure situation.
Trojan quick bits
- CB Kevin Thomas and DT Jurrell Casey reportedly had the flu earlier in the week, but Carroll confirmed that they will be ready to play Saturday
- Fourth string QB Garrett Green, who runs a 4.5 40-yard dash, played the role of Terrelle Pryor during practice this week
- DT Averell Spicer and C Kristofer O'Dowd were both out for the opener vs. San Jose State, but are expected to play
- The game will also be broadcast in 3D, which will be shown at USC's Galen Center
Buckeye quick bits
- Star WR DeVier Posey reportedly walked with a limp earlier in the week, but went through full practice Wednesday. This may gave freshman Duron Carter, son of Hall of Famer Chris Carter, a chance to shine
- Brandon Saine and Dan Herron are expected to split carries
- Punt return duties are expected to be split between Dane Sanzenbacher and Ray Small
Odds, trends, and weather
There hasn't been that much movement with the line. It opened at -6.5 in favor at USC and now sits at -7 at most books.
Southern Cal has been a double-digit favorite in its last 15 games and has not had the benefit of dealing with a single-digit spread since November of 2007, when it was a 3.5-point favorite against then-No.7 Arizona State.
As single digit favorites, the Trojans are on a seven-game ATS winning streak and have covered by a large margin. The spread was covered by an average of 13.7 points in those games. The last time the Trojans failed to cover a single-digit spread was against Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns in the 2006 Rose Bowl.
In last year's game the Buckeyes were 10.5-point underdogs, which the Trojans easily covered. The game went under the total of 44.5, with USC winning 35-3. This year's total opened at 45 and has seen only slight half point movements.
Expect lows in the lower 50s with North winds around 5 mph Saturday night. It’s partly cloudy but no rain is expected. The last time the Trojans visited the Horseshoe was in 1990 and the contest ended with 2:36 left on the clock. The game was called due to heavy rains and severe thunder and lightning. USC won 35-26.
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Saturday, September 12
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Game of the day: USC at Ohio State
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USC Trojans at Ohio State Buckeyes (+7, 45)
Believe the hype. Hollywood invades the Horseshoe when No. 3 USC visits No. 7 Ohio State in what is seen as the biggest game in the early college football season. The importance of the game extends beyond the reputation of the Buckeyes to win during big games, as the credibility of the Big Ten is at stake as well.
As for USC, it has dominated non-conferences BCS opponents on the road, winning eight straight. But with the Oregon loss to Boise State last week and recent BCS title game snubs, the image of the PAC -10 as always, lies within Trojans’ non-conference performances.
Pressuring Barkley
Most of the attention is centered around the quarterbacks, sophomore Terrell Pryor and true freshman Matt Barkley. Both were the No. 1 QBs out of high school, but the similarities stop there. Pryor made his commitment process a long drawn out drama that extended beyond national signing day, while Barkley committed to USC in grade 11. Pryor's a dual-threat QB while Barkley's a traditional pocket passer.
Many people are eager to see how the true freshman Barkley will handle the crowd in Columbus. He went 15-for-19 for 233 yards and one TD in his college debut last week. USC has done well on the road with new quarterbacks, but Palmer, Leinart, Booty and Sanchez were not true freshman when they first faced a hostile crowd.
Barkley joked with the Daily News that the toughest crowd he ever went against was "Maybe in the seventh grade, when the parents got in a fight at a junior All-American game,"
Expect early pressure from the Ohio State defense in an attempt to rattle the freshman. The key battle will be along the line. Southern Cal has one of the best offensive lines in the country, but Ohio State’s defensive line boasts great depth and defensive coordinator Jim Heacock will be rotating fresh bodies constantly. The last time Ohio State faced a high profile freshman QB was in 2006 against Colt McCoy of Texas. The Buckeyes beat No. 2 Texas in Austin 24-7 as two point underdogs.
Containing Pryor
A big key for the game will be stopping Terrelle Pryor, who brings back nightmares of Vince Young and the 2006 Rose Bowl
Southern Cal’s reputation of struggling against scrambling QBs is a bit unjustified as very few people could stop Vince Young that year and USC did only lose by three points. The Trojans will look to spy a lot and will leave the secondary in man coverage for most of the game. When Pryor did see success against the Trojans last year it was on draws and rollouts. Head coach Pete Carroll will be expecting the same this year.
Ohio State has a bit of an edge at QB with Pryor not having to split duties with Todd Boeckman, who threw two interceptions in last year's game. Southern Cal took at hit losing an experienced signal caller in Mark Sanchez. Pryor was 7-for-9 in last year's game, throwing for 52 yards and rushing for 40.
USC run game
Despite the media focus on the QBs, the key to the game may actually lie within USC's run game. Southern Cal again has a talented rotation of running backs that goes five deep and fullback Stanley Havili is a huge offensive threat. As is the case with the last couple of years, it’s hard to tell what that rotation will be, but Joe McKnight and Stafon Johnson are expected to get the bulk of the carries.
In last week's contest against San Jose State, USC's run pass ratio was 2-to-1, with the team rushing for 343 yards. The offense, under new coordinator John Morton, features 32-year-old Jeremy Bates who will be calling plays. Bates seemed to be running a more passive gameplan and will be cautious with Barkley. Despite his age Bates does have a wealth of experience having tutored Jay Cutler as an assistant with the Denver Broncos.
Buckeyes secondary
Ohio State’s biggest weakness is the secondary. The focus on pressuring Barkley and on stopping the run could leave the Buckeyes in single-coverage trouble with a talented receiving core that is led by Damian Williams. This year, USC will also not have to gameplan around former star CB Michael Jenkins, who now plays on Sundays.
Most the of the criticism has been directed towards safety Anderson Russell, who was beat on both TD passes from Navy last week and is known for giving up the game-winning TD against Texas in the Fiesta Bowl last year. The team seems to be addressing the problem with Russell relegated to the second team in practice and JR Jermale Hines taking over his place in the first team.
Throw out last week's result
USC's 52-3 blowout of San Jose St. and Ohio State's season opening nail biter against Navy should not be completely ignored. But those games are not a clear indication of how each team will come out Saturday.
The Trojans were slowly working in a true freshman at QB and USC's scout-team defense is perhaps a notch above San Jose St. Barkley himself claimed that the hardest part of the game was, "The run up the tunnel at halftime”.
Things were a bit tougher in Columbus with Navy coming within a two-point conversion of tying the game late in the fourth quarter.
Many critics will compare the opener with the narrow 26-14 victory over the Ohio Bobcats last year, which occurred a week before the USC game. Ohio, however, was a 4-8 team while Navy has been to six straight bowl games.
It’s a safe bet that the Buckeyes were looking ahead and the close game against Navy may actually work in their favor, having already put themselves in a pressure situation.
Trojan quick bits
- CB Kevin Thomas and DT Jurrell Casey reportedly had the flu earlier in the week, but Carroll confirmed that they will be ready to play Saturday
- Fourth string QB Garrett Green, who runs a 4.5 40-yard dash, played the role of Terrelle Pryor during practice this week
- DT Averell Spicer and C Kristofer O'Dowd were both out for the opener vs. San Jose State, but are expected to play
- The game will also be broadcast in 3D, which will be shown at USC's Galen Center
Buckeye quick bits
- Star WR DeVier Posey reportedly walked with a limp earlier in the week, but went through full practice Wednesday. This may gave freshman Duron Carter, son of Hall of Famer Chris Carter, a chance to shine
- Brandon Saine and Dan Herron are expected to split carries
- Punt return duties are expected to be split between Dane Sanzenbacher and Ray Small
Odds, trends, and weather
There hasn't been that much movement with the line. It opened at -6.5 in favor at USC and now sits at -7 at most books.
Southern Cal has been a double-digit favorite in its last 15 games and has not had the benefit of dealing with a single-digit spread since November of 2007, when it was a 3.5-point favorite against then-No.7 Arizona State.
As single digit favorites, the Trojans are on a seven-game ATS winning streak and have covered by a large margin. The spread was covered by an average of 13.7 points in those games. The last time the Trojans failed to cover a single-digit spread was against Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns in the 2006 Rose Bowl.
In last year's game the Buckeyes were 10.5-point underdogs, which the Trojans easily covered. The game went under the total of 44.5, with USC winning 35-3. This year's total opened at 45 and has seen only slight half point movements.
Expect lows in the lower 50s with North winds around 5 mph Saturday night. It’s partly cloudy but no rain is expected. The last time the Trojans visited the Horseshoe was in 1990 and the contest ended with 2:36 left on the clock. The game was called due to heavy rains and severe thunder and lightning. USC won 35-26.
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